Sleep in Safety
Encyclopedia
Sleep in Safety is the 1983 debut album by the American deathrock
band 45 Grave
. It is the band's only studio album. A remastered edition of the album was released in 1993 on Restless Records
, including two additional bonus tracks.
Stylistically, the album contains punk rock
and gothic rock
influences, and is representative of the deathrock
genre. While not straight horror punk
, it utilizes tongue-in-cheek lyrics (such as on "Riboflavin") and sound effects and audio excerpts from horror films (evident on "Slice O' Life"). The album is often considered a landmark in deathrock and American gothic rock and one of finest examples of its genre.
, Paul Cutler and Don Bolles except where noted.
Tracks 13 and 14 only appear on the 1993 remaster of this album.
Deathrock
Deathrock is a term used to identify a sub-genre of punk rock incorporating horror elements and spooky atmospherics, that emerged on the West Coast of the United States in 1979.-Characteristics:...
band 45 Grave
45 Grave
45 Grave are an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California formed in 1979. The original group broke up in 1985 but vocalist Dinah Cancer subsequently revived the band. 45 Grave are noted as one of the first bands to mix punk rock with horror-themed lyrics, thereby positioning them as...
. It is the band's only studio album. A remastered edition of the album was released in 1993 on Restless Records
Restless Records
Restless Records was started in El Segundo, California in 1981 by Enigma Records and primarly released alternative, metal and punk records. Restless also licensed and released records from Bar/None Records, Metal Blade Records and Mute Records...
, including two additional bonus tracks.
Stylistically, the album contains punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
and gothic rock
Gothic rock
Gothic rock is a musical subgenre of post-punk and alternative rock that formed during the late 1970s. Gothic rock bands grew from the strong ties they had to the English punk rock and emerging post-punk scenes...
influences, and is representative of the deathrock
Deathrock
Deathrock is a term used to identify a sub-genre of punk rock incorporating horror elements and spooky atmospherics, that emerged on the West Coast of the United States in 1979.-Characteristics:...
genre. While not straight horror punk
Horror punk
Horror punk is a music genre that mixes Gothic and punk rock sounds with morbid imagery and lyrics, which are often influenced by horror films...
, it utilizes tongue-in-cheek lyrics (such as on "Riboflavin") and sound effects and audio excerpts from horror films (evident on "Slice O' Life"). The album is often considered a landmark in deathrock and American gothic rock and one of finest examples of its genre.
Track listing
All songs written by Dinah CancerDinah Cancer
Dinah Cancer is the stage name of Mary Simms. She is a vocalist, best known for her band 45 Grave, one of the founders of the genre of music known as "deathrock".-Biography:...
, Paul Cutler and Don Bolles except where noted.
- "Insurance from God" - 5:04
- "Evil" - 2:53
- "Partytime" - 3:17
- "Violent World" (Mikey Borens) - 2:07
- "Slice O' Life" - 6:08
- "Phantoms" - 3:56
- "Dream Hits II" (Cancer, Cutler) - 1:49
- "Bad Love" (Cancer, Cutler, Mark Johnson) - 2:46
- "Surf Bat" - 1:58
- "Riboflavin" - 2:53
- "Procession" - 5:17
- "45 Grave" - 3:49
- "School's OutSchool's Out (song)Female pop duo Daphne & Celeste, released a cover of the song in 2000. The chorus is based on Alice Cooper's hit of the same name, and some other elements of that song have been retained, although much of the song is "original", in a pop-rap style...
" (Alice CooperAlice CooperAlice Cooper is an American rock singer, songwriter and musician whose career spans more than four decades...
) - 3:33 - "Partytime (Single Version)" - 3:06
Tracks 13 and 14 only appear on the 1993 remaster of this album.
Personnel
- Dinah CancerDinah CancerDinah Cancer is the stage name of Mary Simms. She is a vocalist, best known for her band 45 Grave, one of the founders of the genre of music known as "deathrock".-Biography:...
- Vocals - Paul Cutler - Lead guitarLead guitarLead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
, backing vocalsBacking vocalistA backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
, keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments... - Paul RoesslerPaul RoesslerPaul Roessler was a prominent member of the L.A. punk scene during the late 1970s and '80s. He played keyboards in bands such as The Screamers, Twisted Roots, 45 Grave, Nervous Gender, SAUPG, Geza X and the Mommymen, Mike Watt and the Secondmen, Nina Hagen and The Deadbeats...
- keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
, backing vocalsBacking vocalistA backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists... - Rob Graves - BassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, backing vocalsBacking vocalistA backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists... - Don Bolles - drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, backing vocalsBacking vocalistA backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
Production
- Michael WagenerMichael WagenerMichael Wagener is a music producer, mixer, and engineer from Hamburg, Germany, best known for his work with many top hard rock and heavy metal bands in the late 80's. Wagener's works have sold over ninetyfour million albums worldwide. Wagener was the original guitarist for the German band Accept...
- Producer, Engineer - Ed Colver - Photography, Cover Photo
- Bob SeidemannBob SeidemannBob Seidemann is an American graphic artist and photographer best known for the creation of several album covers and portraits of musicians in the 1960s and 1970s.Seidemann first gained notoriety in 1967 for a photographic interpretation of the Pietà...
- Photography, Insert Photography - Craig Leon - Producer, Engineer
- Paul Cutler - Producer, Cover Art Concept, Concept
Songs and History
- "Riboflavin" (originally "Riboflavin Flavored, Non-Carbonated, Poly-Unsaturated Blood") was recorded in 1980 for LAFMSLos Angeles Free Music SocietyThe Los Angeles Free Music Society has been, since the early 1970s, the banner heading of a loose collective of experimental musicians in Los Angeles, California who were joined by an aesthetic based around radicalism and playfulness...
's compilation album Darker Skratcher. - In 1985, a version of "Partytime" was featured on the soundtrack to the film Return of the Living DeadReturn of the Living DeadThe Return of the Living Dead is a 1985 American zombie film that was followed by several sequels. The film was written and directed by Dan O'Bannon and starred Clu Gulager, James Karen and Don Calfa....
. There are in fact four different versions of the song: the album version (on Sleep in SafetySleep in SafetySleep in Safety is the 1983 debut album by the American deathrock band 45 Grave. It is the band's only studio album. A remastered edition of the album was released in 1993 on Restless Records, including two additional bonus tracks....
), the single version (slightly shorter than the album version), the soundtrack version (faster and featuring different lyrics) on the The Return of the Living Dead soundtrack, and an early, very different demo version that appears on several 45 Grave compilations. - "Evil" was the only song from this album to appear on mainstream television, receiving play on MTVMTVMTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
.